Handheld mobile communication devices have become well known in the art. In general, these devices now typically include a graphical display (e.g., an LCD screen) and a keypad—typically alphanumeric—by means of which a user enters information into the device. The devices further often include one or more navigation tools such as thumbwheels, trackballs, sensor touchpads, etc. by means of which, in combination with keypad entries, the user controls operation of the device. Some of the original (and even many current) handheld mobile communication devices were made with a “unibody” design, in which the display, keypad, and any navigation tools were attached to a common body member.
However, it is also common for the keypad to reside on one member (“the keypad member”) and for the display to reside on a second member (“the display member”) that is attached to and movable relative to the first member. This configuration allows the display member to be moved between an open position, in which additional features of the device are enabled including a keypad, and a closed position relative to the keypad member. Typically, the display member covers some or all of the keys on the keypad member when it is in the closed position, thereby preventing unintentional actuation of the keys on the keypad of the mobile communication device.
According to one known configuration of such a two-member construction, the display member overlies the keypad member and slides generally parallel to the keypad member to expose the keys. Thus, a flat overall configuration of the device is maintained. However, while this arrangement is not necessarily unsatisfactory, many users prefer the ergonomics of a device in which the display member is tilted upward toward them. An angle of approximately 155° between the keypad member and the display member, e.g., like that found on many current “clamshell,” flip-open type cellular phones, has been found to be most desirable. While this fact, in turn, might suggest the general desirability of constructing all handheld mobile communication devices with a flip-open type configuration, the connection (hinge) between the display member and the keypad member has, in many cases, proven to be a weak point in the construction of such devices.